RUSSELL Findlay has been left red-faced after a Tory politician he once urged voters to back defected to Reform.
Alec Leishman, a councillor in Renfrewshire, has joined Nigel Farage’s party – one of a number of Conservatives who have jumped ship while the party tanks in the polls.
It is thought that so far six sitting Conservative councillors have defected to Reform, most notably Thomas Kerr, previously a high-profile Tory in Glasgow.
Great to meet Alec Leishman - fantastic @ScotTories candidate for Paisley Southeast by-election Alec says 'coming out' as Tory in 2020s was tougher than as gay in 1990s My latest Paisley Daily Express column 👇 pic.twitter.com/JeSq7I9s8r
— Russell Findlay MSP (@RussellFindlay1) November 25, 2021
Findlay penned a newspaper piece for the Paisley Daily Express backing Leishman in the run-up to a council by-election in 2021.
The now Scottish Tory leader hailed Leishman as a “smart guy who wants to serve his community” and added: “He’s a pragmatic Conservative who loves Scotland just as much as any SNP supporter.”
The 2021 by-election was cancelled and Leishman was elected during the council elections the following year.
We are delighted to welcome Renfrewshire Cllr. Alec Leishman to @reformparty_uk 🤝 Across the central belt people are coming together fed up and angry, ready to join our movement for change. Scotland needs Reform 🏴 pic.twitter.com/SlxPdMdPVM
— Reform UK Scotland (@ReformUKScot) February 19, 2025
In his endorsement, Findlay also highlighted comments in which Leishman had said: “Coming out in mid-1990s was easier than coming out as a Tory in mid-2000s. Throughout my life I’ve had more hate for my politics than I ever did for my sexuality.”
News of Leishman's defection came just as Findlay was delivering a speech in Edinburgh to rally his supporters around cutting public spending.
In a statement on Twitter/X, Reform UK's Scottish branch said: "Across the central belt people are coming together fed up and angry, ready to join our movement for change."
Findlay has previously said he "can't control" people leaving his party to join Farage's troops.
Reform have been outperforming the Tories in Scottish opinion polls since December, according to Electoral Calculus.
A Scottish Conservatives spokesperson said: “We wish Alec well.”
